In
a criminal case guaranteed to send shockwaves throughout the international
pharmaceutical industry, French authorities are targeting a US-based
drug company and its executives in a homicide investigation.

The
multi-billion dollar corporation GlaxoSmithKline and one of its key
executives are facing possible manslaughter charges stemming from
allegations that the company
failed to fully disclose side effects from an anti-Hepatitis "B"
vaccine distributed between 1994 and 1998.

Also
being investigated is the French-based drug company Sanofi Pasteur,
which also sold doses of the Hepatitis "B" vaccine, according to French
news sources

"The
investigations are in response to allegations that the companies failed
to fully disclose side effects from an anti-hepatitis B drug used
between 1994 and 1998," stated the French source.

Hepatitis
B is a serious disease caused by a virus that attacks the liver. The
virus, which is called hepatitis B virus (HBV), can cause lifelong
infection, cirrhosis (scarring) of the liver, liver cancer, liver
failure, and death, according
to the Centers for Disease Control.

This
virus spread through having sex with an infected person without using
a condom (the efficacy of latex condoms in preventing infection with
Hepatitis "B" is unknown, but their proper use might reduce transmission),
by sharing drugs, needles, or "works" when injecting drugs, through
needlesticks or sharps exposures on the job, or from an infected mother
to her baby during birth.

In
the US, the Hep "B" vaccine is usually mandated by the states for
physicians, nurses, hospital workers, law enforcement officers, prison
guards and others who are likely to come into contact with those at-risk
of carrying the virus.

Between
1994 and 1998, close to two-thirds of the French population, and almost
all newborn babies, received a hepatitis B vaccine. The vaccination
campaign was halted after concerns arose over the shot's side effects.

While
more than 25 plaintiffs, including the families of five people who
died after the vaccination, have launched a civil action in the case
against the drug companies, it is the criminal charges that have had
a chilling effect on pharmceutical companies.

"While
conservatives may believe in limited government, when it comes to
life and death, they usually favor government action including the
use of the criminal justice system to protect American lives from
amoral corporate executives," said political strategist Mike Baker.

"Maybe
if the pharmaceutical [company] bigwigs see their colleagues frog-walked
to prison, they will think twice before distributing shoddy vaccines,"
said Baker.

"I
believe police departments should set up special units to investigate
deaths attributed to vaccines, especially those that are mandatory
for children," said former NYPD Detective Sid Frances.

"A
killers are killers, whether they wear hip-hop outfits or three-piece
Armani suits," he said. Det. Frances even believes investigators in
the US should target government officials who mandate vaccinations,
especially in the public schools.

In
a related case, this time in Russia, prosecutors are actively investigating
GlaxoSmithKline for illegal vaccine experiments on children. Experimental
vaccine¬ tests on minors are illegal in Russia, according to a report
by the Alliance for Human Research Protection.

A
statement posted on the Prosecutor General's Web site indicates that
investigators began the probe at a hospital about 550 miles southeast
of Moscow, after several children who received the experimental vaccines
without parental consent fell ill and parents raised questions, according
to the AHRP report.

The
statement said that more than 100 children between the ages of one
and two were vaccinated during the trials.The vaccines: Varilrix,
for chickenpox, Priorix, for mumps, measles and rubella, and Priorix
Tetra, would treat all four diseases, have since been halted.

Russian
prosecutors said parents had been told the vaccines were humanitarian
aid, while the deputy director of the hospital involved had been paid
$50,000 to participate in the trials.

NewsWithViews.com
contacted the Centers for Disease Control headquarters to obtain information
on any investigations being conducted in the United States. According
to the CDC Press Room, there are no US criminal investigations involving
vaccines, and there are no criminal complaints involving vaccinations.

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"The
CDC is a public health organization, not a law enforcement agency.
We should have police units at the state and/or local level to investigate
deaths and suspicious illnesses due to vaccinations and products being
sold by pharmaceutical companies," claims Mike Baker.

"Most
of the companies have no allegiance to America. They view the US merely
as the 'home office,'" he added.

A
formal investigation as been launched by French authorities against two
managers from drug companies GlaxoSmithKline and Sanofi Pasteur. A second
investigation for manslaughter has also been opened against Sanofi Pasteur
MSD, according to French news sources.